


Throne

by teroinreadsteroinwrites



Category: One Piece
Genre: F/M, we get a majority of the arm jokes out of the way in the first few chapters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-12
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2019-05-05 14:22:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 16,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14620529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teroinreadsteroinwrites/pseuds/teroinreadsteroinwrites
Summary: “I can be very disarming.”“Looks like you’ve been disarmed,” I jabbed, not looking up at him.Benn let out a loud laugh at that.Shanks grinned. “You wound me.”“Clearly, I’m not the only one.”





	1. Chapter 1

With a sigh I rested my head in my palm, staring out the windows of the store that I worked in, tapping my pencil against my clipboard.

 

The waves were gentle as they rolled in, crashing on the shore, before being pulled back out to the ocean. The sun was high in the sky, which was a perfect shade of blue only occasionally disrupted by puffy white clouds.

 

It was an absolutely gorgeous day. It was such a shame that it was going to waste. The people of Aurora were all currently tucked away in their homes and shops, on edge after word had arrived that a pirate ship had been spotted off shore.

 

While they fretted, I couldn’t have been more bored.

 

Once word has reached Gene, the owner of the general store (and the only other person that worked there), he had pulled me from the stock room, where I was rearranging our inventory for what was probably the thousandth time and put me on the counter, which was fine except there was nothing to do. There were no customers to wait on, pirate or otherwise, and I had already cleaned and straightened up the displays. I’d wiped the counter down so many times I was fairly certain that I could see my reflection in it.

 

Normally, I preferred to stay away from the public, hence why I spent so much time rearranging the store room.

 

At a glance, I was rather unassuming. Sure, I was big for a woman, standing at over six feet tall and weighing over 200 pounds, but aside from that there was nothing physically to set me off from anyone else on the island.

 

It was only once people got close did things go awry. My very presence instilled fear into the hearts of most people, even the biggest and bad that Aurora Village had to offer.

 

As a teenager, I had been forced to eat a devil fruit, the Oni-Oni no Mi: Model Balor. It was mythical zoan. It granted me the ability to turn into the demon king, Balor. The fruit was powerful, so much so that even in my full human form, the aura of beast I turned into was enough to scare people away.

 

It was vexing to say the least. It made village life impossible.

 

Most people avoided me. Devil fruits were scary enough in these parts, but a demon fruit was next level. I had to make alternate arrangement with shops to purchase goods, because the owners didn’t want me in their stores, and I was almost always the first to be suspected of any violence or destruction that came about.

 

The unofficial protectors of the village persecuted me. Tel and his cronies, a group of idiots that had tormented me, since I arrived in the village 18 years prior. With the exception of some sharp words, I had been nothing, but a model villager, despite them trying to provoke me into behaving otherwise. Their fear was just as unfounded as it was persistent.

 

Gene and Rayne, a vicious old bat who owned the apartment I rented and sometimes made me work in her tavern below it, were the only people unfazed by the fruit. At least they acted it.

 

Gene and Rayne, my landlord, were the only people in the village, who treated me as if I was normal. It wasn’t so much that the treated me as if I was normal, as much as they treated my ability as if it was normal.

 

I couldn’t deny that the fruit came in handy. My very presence was enough to deter would be thugs from coming after the store or the tavern. I had successfully fended off countless crews and groups of bandits.

 

If I didn’t scare them off, I got to kick their asses, which was usually a fun time. I didn’t my devil fruit for that, but I wasn’t one to deny myself the pleasure of watching them freak out as I transformed.

 

The door opened, ringing the bell above it. I perked up, eyeing the group of three that walked in, recognizing a few of the faces from their wanted posters. ‘ _My oh my,_ ’ I thought to myself.

 

“Hello. Welcome to Gene’s General Supply,” I greeted, my voice sweet. “Is there anything I can help you with?”

 

“Just looking for now. Our captain and the first mate will be here soon, and they’re gonna want to fill out an order.”

 

I nodded, noting that they were surprisingly respectful and that only one looked to be uncomfortable. “If you need help with anything just let me know.”

 

I returned to my previous position, watching the men as they looked at the goods on the shelves. They weren’t causing any trouble, but it wasn’t because of me it seemed, which was honestly kind of refreshing.

 

The door opened once more, and two more men entered, appearances undeniable.

 

I smiled at them, welcoming them to the store and telling them where I could be found if I was needed. They gave me their thanks, both grinning at me, one a small smirk around his cigarette, the other a wide toothy thing.

 

It was strange, not the smile itself. That in fact was actually nice, especially for a pirate. Straight white teeth all lined up in a row without any holes or spaces. It was a miracle. No. It was that fact that they had smiled. Sure, my brothers smiled at me, Gene too, especially, when her was busting my chops, but that was different. They were close to me. They knew me.  (Plus, I was sure that if any of my brothers gave me any shit Dear Old Dad would give them hell.)

 

The crew conversed for a few minutes, eyeing different items. After about fifteen or twenty minutes they finally approached me, the latter two at the front.

 

“Excuse me, miss?”

 

I perked up, my attention now on the man standing at the end of the counter, none other than Benn Beckman. “Yes?”

 

“Would it be possible for us to place an order?” he asked.

 

I lifted the clip board in my hand. “I was waiting for it,” I said, walking down to stand in front of him.

 

“Finally, someone a step ahead of you, Benn.”

 

My eyes shifted to Red Haired Shanks.

 

“Be careful, or I’m gonna have her remove all the booze you order, Captain.”

 

“No you won’t. There’d be a riot,” Red Hair said, sounding horrified.

 

“And at the center of it would be you,” Beckman shot back.

 

“No respect.” Red Hair shook his head in exaggerated disappointment. “You know a less generous captain would have you killed for such mutinous words.”

 

Beckman rolled his eyes. “Less generous,” he said in a deadpan.

 

I smirked. “Generous huh? I guess I should be expecting a generous tip, once I get your order all put together, Captain Shanks.”

 

That caused Red Hair to shoot me a cheeky grin. “So you’ve heard of me?”

 

“What can I say? You’ve created quite a stir.  First pirate captain I’ve heard of with such a ridiculous hair color,” I teased.

 

“I like her,” Beckman said.

 

“Which doesn’t bode well for me,” Red Hair grumbled, grin not faltering at all.

 

“Don’t worry,” I assured him. “I still want a tip, so I won’t be too hard on you.”

 

Taking their order was easy. It wasn’t obviously forced or awkward, like most of the interactions I had. It flowed naturally with quite a bit of ribbing mixed in.

 

“So Miss…” Shanks trailed of, seeming to just now realize that he didn’t know my name.

 

“Elizabeth,” I supplied.

 

“Miss Elizabeth,” he repeated. “Pretty name for a pretty girl.”

 

“Sweet talkin’ me ain’t going to lower this tab none,” I said, not stopping my calculations as I added up their total.

 

“But will it get you to tell me, where we can get a drink around here?”

 

I chuckled. “There’s a tavern in the village, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up about getting a drink. Owner’s not too fond of pirates. Thinks that they’re all no good bastards out to rob her blind and leave her with their burdens.”

 

Rayne hated pirates. They came in, drank her tavern dry, rarely ever paid without me having to threaten or beat them.

 

“I think we’ll be fine. I can be very disarming.”

 

“Looks like you’ve been disarmed,” I jabbed, not looking up at him.

 

Benn let out a loud laugh at that.

 

Shanks grinned. “You wound me.”

 

“Clearly, I’m not the only one.”

 

I turned my clipboard around and, the totally at the bottom circled in red. Shanks took the clipboard, eyes trailing over it, before handing it off to Benn.

 

Shanks pulled out a bag of belis. “Hit my pride and then my wallet.”

 

I chuckled. “A job well done if I do say so myself.”


	2. Chapter 2

Three loud bangs on my door followed by irritated bellow of “ELIZABETH!” pulled me from the leather bound journal that I had been reading.

 

I sighed. I could ignore her, but that wouldn’t get me anywhere. She knew I was here and would beat on the door, until I either answered or it fell off of its hinges.

 

“I’m coming!” I yelled, setting the book on the table and pulling myself up off of the couch.

 

“What? I asked, pulling the door open.

 

Rayne stood there in her four and a half feet of fury, glaring at me from behind her thick framed glasses.

 

“I need you to get down there and help me. Those damn pirates are going to drink me dry.”

 

I snorted. “I’m pretty sure you’ve been dry for years, Ray.”

 

“Disrespectful brat. I know I’ve told you to respect your elders.”

 

“You’ve also told me that you’re 29, in which case, I’m older than you.”

 

“Ha. Ha. Aren’t you a comedian? Just get dressed and get down there. I gotta run to the cave to restock.”

 

The cave was a hole in the face of the cliff that overlooked the town. I didn’t know what all was in it. I just knew that it was where Rayne kept her alcohol stashed, and that she _never_ _ever_ let anyone go near it.

 

“I don’t see how that’s my problem.”

 

“It’s your fault that they’re down there in the first place!” she snapped. “Red Hair walked in and said the pretty girl at that store said that this was the best place to get a drink.”

 

“I also told him that you hated pirates.”

 

“Elizabeth!” she barked, cane cracking me in the shin.

 

“Fine!” I groaned, rubbing the sore spot. “I’ll be down in five.”

 

I slammed the door in her face, grumbling to myself as I proceeded to put my boots back on and tied my hair up. Grabbing my key and locking the door behind me, I stepped onto the landing and descended the stairs.

 

The air was warm, and there was a gentle breeze. I would have to open the windows, when I came back.

 

My boots made a crunching sound, when I hit the gravel behind the tavern. I walked into the open backdoor, making my way down the dark narrow hallway. I made a stop in the store room, rolling up my sleeves and tying on an apron.

 

I walked out to the front, quickly surveying the bar. The Red Haired crew was out in full force it looked like, drinking, laughing, some even singing, just generally having a grand old time.

 

I walked up behind Rayne, reaching over her to grab the rag out of her hand. “Get out of here. I got this.”

 

“Don’t go tearing the place down,” Rayne instructed, shucking her apron and heading to the back.

 

“Yeah yeah!” I hollered after her. “I’d set it on fire just to spite you if I didn’t live here,” I muttered.

 

“Well look who it is,” Shanks said from his spot on the bar.

 

“Captain,” I greeted. I turned to his first mate. “Hello, Benn.”

 

“You know, I’m getting the feeling that you’re mocking me, when you use my title.”

 

“Only a little,” I answered, wiping down the counter. “Enough to make things fun, but not so much that I actually insult my favorite customer.”

 

Shanks perked up at that. “Favorite, huh?”

 

“If you left me the same kind of tip you left her, you’d be my favorite too,” Yasopp said, coming up behind Shanks and clapping his shoulder.

 

“I was talking about Benn. You know it’s rude to insult a man’s captain.”

 

Benn smirked, and Yasopp laughed out loud. Shanks face was a perfect caricature of offense. 

 

I gave them an overly bright smile. “Now, what can I get you guys to drink?”

 

Tavern work wasn’t hard, though it could be exhausting for sure. I made sure that everyone’s glasses were full and that they were all having a good time. Jolly pirates were usually less of a problem. It was the angry ones that tried to wreck shit and got into fights.

 

The Red Hair crew were some of the best patrons that I had waited on. None of them were pushy or rude, at least to me, to each other most definitely. They treated me kindly, used what little manners they had and made it a point to try to include me in their conversations. The perks of being the one pouring the booze.

 

A lot of people would’ve been uncomfortable in this situation. A tavern full of pirates, one headed by one of the Yonko at that, wasn’t exactly the full house most business owners wanted. However, I was at ease. I came from a family of pirates, my father and my brothers had all taken to the seas.

 

The volume and vulgarity made me feel right at home.

 

Nearly an hour after I arrived my good spirits, were dampened by a new arrival.

 

The bell above the door chimed. I pulled my attention from Yasopp and the story he was telling me about his son to greet the new guest and saw Tel standing there. He had a handful of the other “protectors” with him. They were most certainly here for Shanks and his men.

 

I sighed. This wasn’t going to go well.

 

He stood in the doorway and surveyed the tavern, slowly scrutinizing the crew, a look of disgust on his face.

 

I stood up straight and glared at him. “Don’t you even think about it,” I warned. “You won’t win this fight. And if by divine intervention you did, you most certainly won’t survive the hag, when she gets back and sees that you’ve caused trouble.”

 

Tel scowled at me. “Serving pirates, demon? Really?”

 

I rolled my eyes. ‘ _Same old shit._ ’

 

“Posturing Tel? Really?” I snapped.

 

He went to say something, but I cut him off. “You either sit down, order and behave or you leave.” I picked up the pitcher that I had emptied into Yasopp’s mug and went to refill it.

 

As much as I hated to admit it, and believe me, I hated giving Tel any type of credit, Tel and his goons were pretty good at what they did. They could hold their own in a fight. They were like wolves, using their numbers and teamwork to their advantage. I had seen some of the men they chased off and they were no joke. It was impressive. For the West Blue at least. In the grand scheme of things they were more like rats than wolves.

 

Tel’s game was simple. It was also effective at first. Once he found a target, he planned an ambush. Find their location, set the trap, provoke them until they lash out and use that provocation to lure them into the ambush. Because they lashed first, despite being provoked it made Tel look like the hero, someone who had just defended himself from this vile and dangerous person. He’d been trying it on me for years.

 

In the beginning, it didn’t work, because I was so broken from the events that had led me here, I fully bought into everything that he was saying.

 

As time went on and my brothers, Rayne and Gene helped pull the pieces of me back together, I realized what he was trying to do. Not that I was ever a miscreant, but I had truly been on my best behavior afterwards.

 

It worked too. I had proven to the village that, while I was dangerous, I wasn’t a danger to them. They kept their distance, but they no longer called for my head like they did, when I first arrived.

 

Tel’s reputation was far too important for him to go after me without a good reason.

 

Tel walked in and sat at the bar, putting his feet up. His goons crowded around him. “Get me a drink, demon, and something for the boys here too.”

 

“Let’s get somethings straight here, _boy_. One, get your feet off the bar. This is not your damn house.” I walked over and knocked his feet off the bar. “I know you’re planning something. Whatever it is, you are _not_ doing it in here.”

 

I knew that Shanks and his crew could easily handle Tel. I would’ve let them, if we were anywhere else, but we were at the tavern. I didn’t want to end up homeless, because they damaged or destroyed it, or to end up dead, because Rayne would murder me.

 

“Three,” I let my haki slip into my words, which in its small dose was enough to make Tel and his men pale and break into cold sweats, something that they would attribute to my devil fruit. “My name is not demon. It is Elizabeth. _Use it_.”

 

Tel was trying to act tough still, as if he were unaffected by my mix of demonic aura and haki, but I knew better, so did the Red Haired Pirates, if the amused looks on their faces were anything to go by. Surprisingly, they were all totally unaffected. It was surprising, considering that I hadn’t bothered trying to spare them from it.

 

I eased up and got his drink. “I was gonna get you a beer, but you look like I need something stronger,” I said, my tone patronizing.

 

“You are one scary lady, when you want to be,” Shanks said, letting out a low whistle.

 

“When I want to be?” I questioned, my brows raised in surprised. “I’m scary, when I don’t want to be. I know you noticed it. The second you walked into the store you had to have felt it.”

 

“I did, but I was too distracted to really care.”

 

“Distracted?”

 

Shanks’ eye glanced down at my cleavage and then back up to my face.

 

“You’d be amazed by how often that happens,” Benn deadpanned.

 

“Your beauty outweighs the whole, something evil lurks beneath the surface vibe you give off.”

 

Tel and I scoffed at the same time, causing us to turn to glare at the other one. I flipped him off, before turning my attention back to the men in front of me.

 

“Charming,” Shanks, teased.

 

“I save my charm for people, who leave decent tips. Why do you think I lay it on so thick for you?” I joked.

 

“You’re about as charming as a wolverine,” Tel shot.

 

“That’s rich coming from you,” Rayne said, reappearing.

 

“You’re one to talk.”

 

“Yeah. Yeah. He break anything?” she asked, gesturing to Tel.

 

I shook my head.

 

“Good. Liz, probably saved you boys a lot of trouble.”

 

“Saved us trouble? I’m starting to think she is trouble,” Shanks ribbed.

 

“She is,” Rayne said at the same time I said, “I am.”

 

“She gets that from her father,” Rayne explained. “And her brothers. The whole lot is a pain in the-“

 

“They get it,” I cut her off.

 

“Brat.” She cracked me with that damn cane again, causing me to hiss. “Bring in my barrels for me.”

 

“Beats the shit out of me, and then fucking orders me around. I’m not actually your damn employee.”

 

Shanks grinned.

 

“I know. _Charming._ ”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t like this one. It’s short and it feels kind of out of place, but I feel like we needed a bit more build between these two before we go forward.

I shuffled through the stack of envelopes in my hands, pulling out the one with Clara’s name on it. I counted the notes inside one last time, before picking up the items sitting in front of the bakery and sliding the envelope under the door. 

 

Stop one done.

 

I tucked the bread and bag of rolls into my tote and headed down the street to my next stop.

 

It was early in the morning still. The sun had just appeared over the horizon, chasing out the blue black of night with a mix of periwinkle, pink, orange and yellow hues.

 

I stopped, taking a moment to appreciate it. The world we lived in was dangerous. Sunsets were never guaranteed, not even in a small village like Aurora. They were-

 

“Beautiful.”

 

I jumped, startled by the voice. I quickly whipped my head around to look at its owner.

 

Shanks chuckled. He was sitting on the swing on the porch of Mrs. Lane’s inn, looking at the sky as well.

 

The inn as with many of the other places in the village was the only one. It was located right at the bend in the main road, where a majority of the shops and other businesses were. She resided on the very top floor in a room with a large bay window. Often times, you could see her peeking through the curtains looking down the road, trying to see whatever commotion was going on at the time.

 

“Good morning, Miss Elizabeth.” He spoke lowly not to disturb those still sleeping. His voice was gravely, the result of his somnolence, undoubtedly.

 

“Captain,” I returned his greeting, having regained my composure. “Early morning or late night?”

 

“A little bit of both,” he answered. “Didn’t sleep all too well, so I woke up early.”

 

“I can’t say that passing out drunk produces the most restful sleep,” I said a wry smile on my face.

 

“Depends on where you pass out.”

 

“Fair enough.”

 

“What about you?” he asked. “Getting the shopping done awfully early,” he said, eying my bag.

 

“The life of a village pariah,” I answered, using a miserable tone, exaggerated to the nth degree. Returning to my normal speech pattern, I continued, “It’s far less disruptive for me to have them leave my things out for me to pick up in the morning than it is for me to come into their shops. People don’t run or anything, but it completely kills the atmosphere.”

 

“Hm. People here are backwards. I find it hard to believe that a fetching, charismatic young thing like you could ever kill the room unintentionally.”

 

“Are you always this complimentary in the mornings?” I asked.

 

“No,” he answered honestly. “Usually, I don’t wake up until morning has passed.”

 

I shook my head, smiling in amusement. “I’ve seen how you drink. I’m surprised you can wake up at all.”

 

“It’ll take more than a little liquor to kill me.”

 

“I don’t think you know the meaning of _a little_ , Captain.”

 

“Shanks,” he offered, catching me off guard for the second time.

 

“Red Hair,” I shot back.

 

“Captain it is,” he relented.

 

I smirked victoriously, adjusting my bag and turning to continue down the street. I still had the rest of my orders to pick up. “Enjoy the rest of your day, Captain.”

 

“You too, Miss Elizabeth.”


	4. Chapter 4

Obnoxious pounding on my door, pulled me from the book that I was reading, a new addition to my collection from one of my younger brothers. It wasn’t really my preferred genre, but I appreciated the gift none the less.  It was the first time that I had received anything from this one. I was going to have to make sure to send something special for him next time that one of our other brothers came for a visit.

 

I marked the page and set the book down on the table. Even without the obnoxious banging, I would’ve known, who was on the other side of the door. I had been waiting for her to come and get me.

 

Sure enough, when I pulled the door open, Rayne was standing on the other side with a seriously pissed off scowl on her face.

 

“You too?” I asked.

 

“Get rid of them,” she said.

 

“My pleasure.”

 

She stepped out of the way, letting me head down first.

 

Another pirate crew had landed this morning, and these bastards were particularly irritating. They’d barely docked, when they began threatening the fishermen there. Once they had headed into the village, they’d threatened Mrs. Fried and harassed her daughters, stolen from most of the shops and craftsmen around and placed orders for goods that everyone knew they weren’t going to pay for, but were too intimidated not to make.

 

Tel had made his big show shortly after they had docked, but it was rather ineffective. He was undoubtedly setting up his next ambush, which I was fine with at the time. Again, I hated to admit it, but he was good at what he did. However, that meant we had to put up with this nonsense for the entire day, and as I later realized that was just too damn long.

 

At around three, a few of them had shown up at the shop and bothered Gene, causing him to call me out to the front to deal with them.

 

They were every stereotype that I could think of come to life. They were brash, discourteous, callous, and dirty. Above all, this crew was arrogant, so much so that it overrode their senses of fear and self-preservation.

 

They weren’t unafraid. It was obvious that I was danger and what little sense of self-preservation they did have was keenly aware of that. It was obvious from the way their gazes kept flicking to me as they stumbled around the store or how they seemed edgier than before.

 

It just so happened that their arrogance and lack of functioning brain cells were more than capable of stomping that little sense of self-preservation out.

 

I made sure to restore it. I had scared off the earlier group, leaving one with a broken nose, two with missing teeth, another with a broken orbital bone and one with a knife lodged in his arm.

 

I entered through the back of the tavern, making my way to the bar. Shanks and Benn were at their usual seats, as were most of the Red-Haired pirates, who all turned to look at me, when I entered.

 

“Good evening Miss Elizabeth,” Shanks said, lips spreading into a smile.

 

“Captain,” I returned his greeting, glaring at the group at the large round table in the corner of the tavern.

 

There were seventeen total, some sitting, others standing around. They were loud, boasting about their earlier exploits. It made my blood boil.

 

By no means was I under the illusion that pirates were good law-abiding citizens. They lied, they stole, the tricked, cheated and if need be they killed. I knew that all too well. Pirates were violent criminals. I couldn’t be angry at that, when my brothers did much of the same, but my brothers weren’t malicious at least not without reason.

 

Grumpy? Short tempered? Sure. They were quick to fight, and they wouldn’t hesitate to kill. But they didn’t run around threatening people just because they could. This wasn’t some type of power trip for them.

 

Regardless of how the people of Aurora treated me, they were my neighbors. This was my home. And these nobody pirates were violating it.

 

“So, you’re her muscle?” he asked, grin widening.

 

“Who else was it going to be?” I asked. “Tel?”

 

He chuckled. “Fair enough. Don’t let me hold you.”

 

I walked out from behind the bar over to the table.

 

“What the hell? I told the hag, I wanted more beer, not some beastly looking bitch,” the guy in the center of the group sneered. As he spoke, he was polishing his dagger, making sure to twirl it around, showing off the now shiny blade. Every few rotations, the tip of the blade would be pointed in my direction.

 

I smirked. Oh, he was gonna get beastly.

 

“The hag wants you to leave, and yet you’re still here,” I started. “It appears that we don’t always get what we want.”

 

“You’ve got a lot of nerve, little girl. Do you know, who I am?”

 

“Captain, she’s the one that gave the guys a hard time earlier,” one whispered to his captain.

 

“No. And I don’t give a shit. Either you leave on your own or I throw- “

 

I stopped the blade now an inch away from my face. The captain sat across the table looking smug. “I’m sorry. Do you want to repeat that?” he asked.

 

I was unable to stop myself from rolling my eyes, quickly hakiing up my hand and snatching the dagger by the blade. My skin switch from black to flesh tone as I twirled it in my hand, fingers much quicker and defter. Unless his clunky movements, my motions were smooth and precise, practiced. I twirled it up to his throat.

 

I cleared my throat. “Now, as I was saying. Either you leave, or I throw your asses out.”

 

Idiot was stupid enough to laugh. I had just used haki, which I knew damn well he had never seen before. I don’t know what crew he was on, and sure they might’ve been pretty bad ass for the West Blue, but they were by no means Grand Line material, and that was the only place that they would probably ever see it.

 

“I don’t like those options.”

 

“Too bad.”

 

He kept talking like I hadn’t spoken. “How about a third one, boys?”

 

Two of the other morons pulled their guns and aimed them at me.

 

“Now, here’s how it’s gonna go. You’re gonna put the knife down and get us more drinks or else we’re gonna paint the walls with your brains,” he said.

 

 “Miss Elizabeth?” he called.

 

“Yes, Captain?”

 

“Why don’t you give us a show?”

 

“Sure, but it’s gonna cost you extra.”

 

“For the love of God, quit flirting and get rid of them already!” Rayne yelled, pulling the front doors open.

 

I hakied up both arms and grabbed the guns, crushing the barrels with my hands. I yanked the mangled weapons and used them to take the two out, before taking the dagger and lodging it into the shoulder of another one.

 

The Red-Haired crew cheered me one, counting as I threw the first three outside on to the street.

 

“Leave,” I said again.

 

The captain looked livid.

 

“Kill her!” he ordered.

 

The remaining thirteen charged at me all at once, a better strategy than they had previously employed. Thirteen on one were pretty shitty odds. For them that is.

 

I was only worried about keeping the damage to a minimum, so that I didn’t die at that hands of the bat and her cane.

 

“I’ve survived the New World, and you think some shitty crew from the West Blue is going to kill me,” I scoffed, going into my hybrid form. My skin not covered in armament haki turned a deep red, pulling tighter over the muscles expanding beneath it. My eyes turn yellow, pupils narrowing to vertical slits. My dark hair turned silver and two curled horns grew out of my head.

 

“What- What the- the hell are you?” one asked, struggling to breathe, from the intense aura I exuded.

 

I chuckled. “I’m a full-time clerk. Part-time bartender.” Then my voice, already deepened from being in my hybrid form, dropped lower. “Until you piss me off. Then I am a nightmare.”

 

“I SAID KILL HER!” the captain yelled.

 

Like this, I was stronger and more durable. I got bigger, but not so big that I lost my speed like I did with my full Balor transformation. I didn’t have my third eye like this. I couldn’t harness Balor’s full strength. I was limited to what I could accomplish physically and with haki. Against these idiots, that was more than enough.

 

I might’ve been a tad bit more violent than I actually needed to. Simple knock outs would’ve worked, but that was nowhere near as much fun as smashing faces and knocking out teeth.

 

“FOURTEEN!” Yasopp cheered, as I hurled another one out the open door.

 

The final two looked at their captain.

 

“Get her!” he repeated, the command sounding more like a plea at this point.

 

“Cap- “

 

“That’s an order!”

 

The two remaining crew members charged, but they had defeated themselves, before I even laid a finger on them. I eyed the captain.

 

There was a moment, where he was frozen. The site of his men piled up outside, finally allowed his true terror and panic to break through his prideful façade. He bolted, but he wasn’t fast enough.

 

I caught him the second he reached the threshold and grabbed him, slamming him up against the one of the trees around the tavern. The tavern was at the very edge of the main road, the cobble stone here had turned to dirt and the tavern stood as the last structure, before nature took over.

 

Some of the Red-Haired crew had come out to watch.

 

I transformed into my full Balor form. I was bigger, almost as large as my father though not quite. Then again, it had been so long since I’d seen him, I didn’t know how tall he actually was. Maybe I did have him beat. The most important thing about the transformation was the third eye in the middle of my forehead.

 

It was closed heavy lid hiding it from view.

 

Ever so slightly, I cracked it open.

 

The idiot captain began to sweat, and Immediately, the idiot captain screamed out in pain. He turned red and began to sweat. And we weren’t even boiling yet.

 

“You send your men out like pawns and then run, when you’re the last one left. How sad.”

 

“MAKE IT STOP!” he cried. “PLEASE! PLEASE! LET ME GO! I’LL DO ANYTHING YOU WANT! PLEASE! MAKE IT STOP!”

 

“You’re going to leave. You’re going to order your men to leave. And you’re never ever going to come back. Am I understood?”

 

He whimpered.

 

“Yes or no?” I said.

 

“Yes! Yes! I understand!”

 

I closed the eye and returned to my human form, letting the jack ass fall to the ground.

 

“Get out of here,” I spat.

 

I watched his retreating form, before heading back inside, where I was met with ridiculously loud cheers.

 

“Atta girl, Liz!”

 

“You kicked ass!”

 

“Lizzy! Lizzy! Lizzy!”

 

I ducked my head embarrassed at the attention and went straight to the bar, where I was instantly cracked over the head by Rayne’s cane.

 

“Ow! God damn it!” I brought my hand up to the sore spot.

 

“Stupid girl,” she said. “Sit down.”

 

I shot her a dirty look but did as she said. “I’m fine, you bitter old bitch.”

 

“That’s what you said last time you opened up that damn eye of yours. Then you passed out walking up the stairs.”

 

“Last time was different.”

 

“Not that different.”

 

“That was like a third of the way opened, and I took down an entire galleon. I barely even peaked this time.”

 

“So that was Balor, huh?” Yasopp asked, coming up beside me, clapping a hand on my shoulder. “Pretty intense.”

 

“I gotta say that was quite some show,” Shanks said, from down the bar.

 

“Glad you enjoyed it, I prefer gold coins, but if you have notes, I’ll take them.”

 

 “And then you can cover their tab, since you forgot to make them pay first,” Rayne said.

 

I groaned. There was always something with her. “Fuck you. _Get them out of here. You’re taking too long. Just get rid of them. Where’s my money? Nag nag nag nag nag!_ ” I mocked.

 

I got up and headed to the back of the tavern and unlocked the door that led to the basement, pulling out the chest that I had stashed there earlier.

 

I relocked the door and hoisted the trunk up onto my shoulder. I walked back to the bar and dropped it on the counter. “Here, you ungrateful hag,” I said. “They’re paid for.”

 

“Holy shit,” Yasopp said, eyeing the chest. “Where’d you get that?”

 

“I stole it, and if they’re even half as freaked out as they should be, then they’ll be miles and miles away, before they even realize it’s gone.”

 

“I knew there was a reason I keep you around,” Rayne said, setting a glass of water down in front of me and turning her attention to the gold on the counter.

 

“Pretty bold move bringing that out in front of a bunch of pirates,” Shanks teased.

 

“Her money not mine,” I said at the same time Rayne threatened him.

 

“She will boil you from the inside out and set your ship ablaze.”

 

“Wait was that what you did to him, made his blood boil?” Lucky asked.

 

“No. Not even close. Though I could’ve.” I took a sip of water. “Legend says that the third eye of Balor brought blight, death and destruction, so they kept it covered with seven cloaks. As they took them off, plants were blighted, wood began to heat up, blood began to boil, weakening the heart and driving men mad, and then everything would burst into flames.”

 

“But she’s not Balor. She’s Elizabeth, and opening that eye takes a toll on her, so don’t go making me use her.”

 

I rolled my eyes but smiled none the less. Despite how much she tried to act otherwise, I knew the bat cared about me and was just concerned.

 

“Wouldn’t think of it,” Shanks said, grinning at Rayne. He turned his attention to me. “Miss Elizabeth, you’re the hero tonight. How about you let me buy you a drink?” he asked. “As a token of my appreciation.”

 

“Why Captain, are you trying to get me drunk?” I asked, acting scandalized.

 

“Are you that much of a light weight?” he fired back.

 

“Not even close. Too bad for you. If I was drunk, I might actually be impressed by your ridiculous stories.”

 

“Who said I’m trying to impress you?” he challenged. “I’ve been trying to get Ms. Rayne to pay attention to me, since we’ve landed on this island.”

 

“You’re gonna have to do a lot more than out run the marines to impress me,” she said.

 

He chuckled. “Can’t blame a man for trying.”

 

“No,” she agreed. “But I can a boy.”

 

“Now, I see, where she gets it from,” Shanks said. “But it’s not about my ‘ridiculous’ stories,” he continued. “It’s about Miss Elizabeth’s ridiculous stories, her hero’s journey.”

 

“Who says my stories are ridiculous?” I asked. “I’m just a clerk at a general store on a small island in the West Blue.”

 

“How’d a simple clerk get that good at using conquerors haki?” Benn asked in his usual monotone, brows raised ever so slightly.

 

I sighed dramatically. “I must warn you, it’s not a pleasant tale, and I don’t know if I can kill you all, but it you so much as peep a word of this to anyone, I promise, I will give it my best damn shot.”

 

Shanks’ smile grew.

 

“I want whiskey,” I said. “And I’m gonna change first. I’ll be down in a minute.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up: Obligatory bar scene


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Obligatory Bar Scene

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello
> 
> So we have two options on how we can describe this chapter, either A.) Obligatory Bar Scene or B.) Shameless Exposition Dump Part I. Also as long as I don't get distracted or fuck things up, which are both very real possibilities, there should be another chapter coming soon, like within the next hour or two soon.

I returned to the tavern, having swapped out my usual corset, blouse, jeans and boots for a soft baby blue tunic that was so worn that it hung to my knees like a dress, a pair of shorts and sandals. I pulled my hair out of its bun and let it hang freely. Shanks, Yasopp, Benn and Lucky Roo had moved to the table that the crew of morons and their coward of a captain had previously occupied. There was a spot open between Shanks and Benn, a tumbler full of whiskey and a plate of food sitting there.

 

I slipped into the open seat, picking up the tumbler and taking a sip. “Alright boys, what do you want to know?”

 

“You better eat that.” Rayne gave me a pointed look from behind the bar as she dried a glass.

 

I took a huge bite, making a massive show of it. “Happy?” I asked, mouth full.

 

Rayne’s face scrunched up in disgust. “Finish it, you brat.”

 

“The two of you are quite the characters,” Shanks chirped.

 

“The same can be said about you and your crew, Captain.”

 

“True, but we’re pirates. It comes with the territory. What’s your excuse?”

 

I didn’t skip a beat. “Daughter of a pirate. It’s in my genes.”

 

The boys held off on their questions for a short while, opting instead to rib each other as usual. Shanks was at the center of it, but so was I.

 

I wasn’t used to being an active participant in the conversation. For as many jabs as I got in, I was still on the periphery of most of the ruckus. I spent my time with them listening, laughing at their antics and taking pops when I had them.

 

It was nice to be included. Sure, I had my brothers, Rayne and Gene, but aside from that I lived a fairly solitary life. And even then, my interactions with them were different. They were almost familial. Well in the case of Gene and Rayne that is.

 

While by no means did I think of either of them as my parents, there was no denying that they had helped fill that roll for as long as I had been in the village.

 

These clowns were like… friends. It felt alien, using that word, when referring to my interactions with people as oppose to their interactions with each other.

 

I knew that it wouldn’t belong before they left. For one, they were pirates. Secondly, I had to get them off the island, before my brother showed up. I chose not to dwell on that though. I didn’t really have time to stick to one train of thought for too long, before another story or joke was told, pulling me back into the present.

 

“It’s not funny!” Lucky cried, while the rest of us laughed at his expense. “That was damn good turkey, and it’s a shame it had to go to waste like that.”

 

“You know, Rayne makes an amazing turducken.”  I glanced at the bar. Sure enough, Rayne was glaring at me, though it was obvious that there was no real malice there.

 

“Don’t go telling them shit like that. I’m not making a turducken.”

 

“She also makes the _best_ berry pie.”

 

“Keep talking and I will hit you so hard that not even your devil fruit will help you.”

 

I grinned at her, eyes swimming with mischief.

 

“So Liz?” Benn started. “How’d you master conqueror’s haki?” Benn causally took a drag of his cigarette.

 

“Some of my brothers trained me.”

 

“Your brothers come through here a lot?”

 

I shrugged. “The frequency of their visits has decreased as I’ve gotten older. It used to be that there was always one here. One would show up and would only leave when another arrived. I have a lot of brothers, so they weren’t necessarily here for long. I’m not very close to many of them. Most of them come, stay at the inn and leave, when they’re time is up. Others would stay with me, bring me gifts, train me to use haki, strengthen my devil fruit abilities and to fight. It just depends on who comes through. Now, they check in about once a month.

 

“Have you lived here your whole life?” Yasopp asked.

 

I shook my head. “Nope. I was born on the Grand Line and raised there until I was 13.”

 

“Really, which island?”

 

I shrugged. “Its original name was lost to time, but people refer to it as the Floating Island.”

 

That piqued Shanks’ interest. “The Floating Island? Like a sky island?”

 

“A sky island? Goodness no. It doesn’t float over the ocean or anything, just on it. It isn’t really an island, but a floating village. My people were fisherman, who spent more time on the sea than on the land they inhabited.

 

“When an earthquake caused the island to become unstable hundreds of years ago, they knew they had to leave, but they had nowhere to go. There wasn’t enough time to go scouting for a new home, so everyone boarded the fishing boats and the few big ships they had. They tethered them together with ropes and made makeshift bridges, so that everyone could move about freely.

 

“They couldn’t steer like that, so they drifted, hoping to land somewhere new. It was hard in the beginning. A lot of them died, but eventually they adapted, distilling water, fishing like they always had and sending groups off to trade the fish they caught. As time progressed, they became self-sufficient. A group of ships tied together became a prosperous ‘island.’”

 

“Really?”

 

“Yeah. It was an amazing place,” I said fondly.

 

It had been over fifteen years since I had been there last, but I could picture it clearly. The people bustling about, crossing bridge after bridge to get to work, school, the gardens, and shops. The dark color of wood contrasting against the vibrant greens of the crops on the garden decks, the blue of the sea, when you looked on either side of the bridges. It wasn’t the easiest life to live with the ever changing weather and constant threat of pirates, but it was a happy place. The people were content with their lives. Everyone had a home, food, water and in the end each other.

 

“That’s insane,” Luck said. “I’ve never heard of a village floating on the sea.”

 

“But you’ve heard of a sky island?” I questioned.

 

“Touché.”

 

“Impressive word- “

 

“I’ve got a fairly extensive vocabulary for a pirate, I know,” he boasted.

 

“I mean, I’ve met some extremely intelligent pirates. I was more surprised by the fact that _you_ said it.”

 

“I think I like it better, when you pick on the captain,” he said, ego deflated.

 

“Don’t worry. He’ll still get his,” I assured, smirking at the man beside me.

 

“You’re too cruel, Miss Elizabeth,” Shanks said, his signature grin on his face.

 

“Well, I am a demon.”

 

“Did your dad leave there to become a pirate?” Yasopp interjected, not wanting us to get too far off this topic it seemed.

 

I shook my head. “No. He was a pirate way before he stumbled upon my home. A storm blew my island and his ship in each other’s paths. There was a collision. The crew and the people were stuck together for a while. He and my mother spent a lot of time together, fell into something, she never called it love, and I’ve never talked to him about it.

 

“He left for the sea, but he visited. I knew, who he was. He was in my life growing up, though not often. It was too dangerous for him to stay.”

 

“How’d you end up here?”

 

“Yeah, why’d you leave?”

 

I knocked back the entirety of my drink.

 

Pain never truly leaves you. The injuries I suffered had long since healed, but the scars remained, dark reminders of what I had been through.

 

The same could be said about the mind. I’d recovered from the trauma, but that wasn’t to say that I wasn’t upset by the memories. Instead of pain, they brought anger and a deep burning hatred that could only be quelled with blood.

 

“I didn’t _leave_. I was _taken_ ,” I corrected. “My father has _a lot_ of enemies. One of them caught wind of my existence. They showed up and tried to take my mother and me. My mother fought like hell. She was  
“too much trouble,” so they put a gun up to her head and pulled the trigger. Then, they took me and sold me off as a slave.”

 

They all went quiet. Their usually relaxed and smiling faces were solemn, angry. It was so uncharacteristic from the crew that I had come to know.

 

 “I was purchased by a noble family, not world nobles, but the nobles of some island that I don’t care enough to remember the name of. I was a house slave. I cooked. I cleaned. I sewed. When the occasion called for it, I was paraded out. The daughter of one of the most powerful pirates on the sea, reduced to a simple slave.

 

“They beat the ever-loving hell out of me, as if they were beating the old man himself.” I scoffed. “Their best shots wouldn’t faze him. Hell, it’d hardly even faze me now. But things were different then. I was weak. I couldn’t do anything. I was powerless. That made them feel invincible.”

 

 “Disgusting. Sure, we’re pirates, and we’ve done some horrible things, but that…” Yasopp shook his head.

 

“How’d you get away?” Luck asked.

 

“Don’t ever feed a devil fruit to a captive, especially when you don’t know what it does. They got ahold of the oni oni no mi: model balor. I don’t know how. They probably just bought it. They chained me up and force fed it to me. If the power was useful, then they’d kill me. The fruit would cycle back, and they would either eat it themselves, sell it, feed it to their goons or whatever.

 

“But becoming Balor makes me bigger and stronger. The chains weren’t made of anything special. After all, they had to see what the fruit did. I transformed. The chains broke.”

 

I grinned, a wicked vengeful thing that held not a hint of true happiness. “Tel calls me a monster all the time, because of my devil fruit. My devil fruit doesn’t make me a monster. I know that. What I did that day, that makes me a monster. The fact that I still don’t even feel the slightest hint of remorse. That makes me a monster.”

 

I thought back to that day. The blood, the flames, the smoke, the smell of burning flesh in the air, the feeling of bones crunching under my fist, the satisfaction of it all.

 

People preach that revenge doesn’t make you feel any better. That’s a crock of shit. Revenge feels fucking fantastic. That’s the problem with it. It’s like a drug. It drives you to do things that you wouldn’t do, things that under any other circumstance your heart would be steadfast against.

 

“My father came to my rescue, months after I had been taken. He found the island, the nobles' land barren of anything save for ash, bodies burned beyond recognition.”

 

“Then the stupid idiot brought her here and made her my problem.” Rayne sat another tumbler in front of me. “I never wanted kids, so I never had any. Then Newgate, drops off his spawn with some money and says take care of her, and suddenly, I’ve got a tenant.”

 

“I didn’t realize, when I signed the lease, that I was actually signing adoption papers,” I said. “Were you just my foster mother for the first four years?”

 

“Brat.”

 

“Hag.”

 

“Newgate?” Shanks asked.

 

“Like Edward Newgate?” Benn followed up.

 

I gave Rayne a look. “Way to go, hag. _”_

 

“Don’t give me that look. That stupid boy is far too wrapped up in you to kill you now.”

 

I rolled my eyes at her.

 

“I hope your eyes get stuck like that one day.”

 

I ignored her. “I guess I should finally introduce myself properly. I’m Edward Elizabeth.”

 

“You’re Whitebeard’s kid?” Shanks asked.

 

I nodded, and lifted my tunic, revealing the tattoo on my thigh. My father’s jollyroger stood out against the color of my skin.

 

I had gotten it during one of my escape attempts. Marco had been the one to drag me back that time. He was pissed to say the least. I had been thrown on this island to put distance between myself and my father, and here I was with his jollyroger permanently inked into my skin.

 

I had argued that the constant stream of crew members was equally as conspicuous, but that argument had been ignored in favor of a long and annoyed lecture-yoi.

 

I was sure that Pops knew, but none of my brothers had ever told me of his reaction.

 

Yasopp, Lucky, and Shanks all wore equally amusing masks of shock, mouths open, eyes wide.

 

Benn smirked, taking a drag of his cigarette. “So those brothers, his crew, his sons?” he asked.

 

I nodded once more. “I have quite the extended family.”

 

“Of course, she’s Whitebeard’s daughter,” Shanks muttered under his breath.

 

I chuckled at Shanks. “And you’re that annoying little red-haired bastard that sailed with Roger.”

 

“Have you ever tried to go with them?” Yasopp asked.

 

“When I first got here, I ran away all the time, but you can’t get very far, when you can’t swim. Plus, he has an entire fleet to hunt me down and drag me back if need be.”

 

“It’s been needed.”

 

I lifted my hand up and flipped Rayne off.

 

“I got pretty far a couple of times though. Thought I might get out of here. This one time, someone had to come and get me because… “

 

And with that I launched into another story about my antics with my brothers. It helped to bring the mood back up after all the dark shit. We fell back into our previous pattern. This time I had names to use in my stories.

 

We laughed and drank until the wee hours of the morning, when Rayne finally gave us the boot.

 

“Thanks for that,” I said, as I slipped behind the counter, intending to leave out the back. “That was the most fun I’ve had in a while.”

 

“Any time, Miss Elizabeth,” Shanks said, the others having already trickled out of the front door. “Or should I call you Miss Edward now?”

 

“Just Elizabeth is fine, Captain.”

 

“Miss Edward,” he shot a smug smile on his face.

 

“Using my own tricks against me, I see. Fine. Miss Elizabeth it is.”

 

“Get the hell out of here, so that I can go home,” Rayne bitched.

 

“Yeah yeah. I’m going, hag.

 

“Night, Captain,” I called, heading upstairs.

 

“Sweet dreams, Miss Elizabeth,” Shanks returned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I started writing this, I didn't think anyone was really going to get invested in who her dad is. Mostly because I haven't even tried to be subtle. Like at all. So I feel like this is probably a let down to a lot of people, but at the same time, this was always the plan, so sorry I guess. I know that this was a bit of an exposition dump, and the next chapter is most certainly going to be, because once we get some of this shit out in the open, we can focus on other things like _______ _____ __ ___ _____ and Shanks being ________ as hell and __________ and all that fun stuff.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, remember, when I said there could be a chapter in two hours if I didn't fuck anything up. I fucked up. I had a completely different chapter planned, and it was written, but I don't think it was the right time for that chapter. Then I stated writing this chapter and it felt super forced. The other day it just clicked, and it came naturally, so I hope that the progression in it feels more natural.

“Fuck,” I swore.

 

The sun was pouring through my bedroom windows. Clearly, whoever had originally built the tavern had a thing for morning sun, seeing as when they drew up the plans, they made the windows in the bedroom eastern facing. Either that or this was a horrible horrible oversight on their part.

 

Normally, it didn’t bother me, seeing as I was up way before the sun. However, opening Balor’s third eye had taken a taken a bit out of me, causing me to sleep in. I let out an irritated growl at the realization. I had overslept long enough for the sun and the people of Aurora to rise. I was running way behind.

 

On the bright side, I was probably off from the store. No doubt Gene had heard about me trying to boil a man from the inside. He was aware of the effect I that it had on me. While I was sure that I could handle a normal work day this time, there was no way that he was going to let me try. If I showed up at the store, he’d just send me home with a rant about how he’d been running that store since long before I was born.

 

On the downside, I hadn’t gone to pick up my groceries. Most of the village was up by now, including Tel and his goon squad. My groceries were probably in his possession.

 

I should’ve just gone back to sleep, instead of thinking about how my morning was wasted. But it was too late for that. I was wide awake.

 

I sat up, running a hand through my black hair. ‘ _Might as well get up.’_ I rose out of bed, cracked my joints. I wasn’t sore. It used to be that even going Balor would leave me feeling like I had gotten beat up by a bunch of wild gorillas. It usually went away after I rested for a few days or when Marco used his flames of restoration.

 

I headed to the bathroom, stripping out of my night clothes and getting in the shower. I let the warm water run over me, relaxing my tense muscles.

 

I loved the water. I loved running around in the rain, standing under waterfalls, diving into the sea. I felt alive in the water. My father used to tell me that we were all children of the sea. That had always stuck with me. Maybe that was why the ocean felt like home. 

 

Even now, I yearned to return to her, despite that fact that she had rejected me.

 

Once the water ran cold, I stepped out of shower and wrapped myself in a towel. I ran a brush through my hair and brushed my teeth, before dressing in a too large shirt that one of the boys had left behind and a pair of shorts.

 

Dressed, I headed to the kitchen and put the kettle on, and scanned my cupboards looking for something to eat.

 

Three knocks on the door pulled my attention from my search.

 

The three raps were too quick to be Gene, and that hag didn’t knock. She banged on the door.

 

I eyed warily it for a moment, waiting to see if they knocked again, which they did.

 

I approached slowly. There was a distinct possibility that this was some stupid prank set up by one of Tel’s idiots. I would open the door, and something would blow up or whatever.

 

Three more knocks.

 

I pulled the curtain back from the small window, peering outside.

 

My unease gave way to confusion, upon seeing who was standing on the other side. I unlocked the door and pulled it open. “Captain?”

 

“Good morning, Miss Elizabeth,” he responded, cheerily.

 

“Did you get lost?” I asked. “The bar’s downstairs.”

 

“I’ve never lost my way, when there’s booze at my destination, though I can’t say that I’d mind getting lost, if it led me to a pretty girl’s apartment,” he said. “But that’s not why I’m here. I have a delivery for you,” he said teasingly, holding a basket, which I was fairly certain I had seen on the porch of the inn before, towards me.

 

I tentatively took it, checking its contents. “You grabbed my groceries?”

 

“It was either me or what’s his face,” he offered. “But I figured you’d much rather I show up here than him.”

 

That was for sure. ‘ _Oh, they probably would’ve,’_ I thought. One last time I had slept in, Tel had picked up my groceries and then pelted them at me, when I left for the store in the morning.

 

This was before I had started training with haki. Even now, observation was the type that I was least adept with. Not only was it embarrassing, especially, since they made sure everyone knew about it, but then I had to go around paying everyone for the shit that they threw at me, so they didn’t think I was a thief and would continue our arrangement.

 

“Are they paid for?” I asked. “Because it won’t matter if it was you or Tel, if no one left the cash.”

 

“I did. I couldn’t have people thinking that my favorite outcast was a thief.” Shanks wore a warm smile, leaning against the banister.

 

“Thank you,” I said. The sincerity in my words caught both of us off guard. It was a simple favor, but it meant a lot to me. My brothers didn’t care about my reputation. It made sense. They were pirates and they never stayed, so they didn’t have to. But I lived here. I had to see these people every day. While I didn’t care about what people thought of me from a personal stand point (If they had a problem then fuck ‘em.), I did care about how their opinions of me effected my everyday life.

 

“I- Thanks. Give me a second, and I’ll go grab some cash.”

 

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, waving me off.

 

“You don’t have to buy my groceries,” I said.

 

“I didn’t have to bring them either,” he shot, “But I wanted to. I’m also supposed to tell you to not to even think about going near that store today.”

 

I rolled my eyes. “I figured.” I adjusted the basket on my arm. “If you won’t let me pay you back. At least let me make you breakfast,” I offered. “I was just about to make some for myself anyways.”

 

“You don’t have- “

 

I cut him off, an easy smile on my face, my tone smug, “But I want to.”

 

He chuckled, grinning back at me. “I guess I can’t argue with that, now can I?”

 

“Not at all. Now, come in.”

 

I stepped aside, allowing Shanks into my apartment. I led him through the living room, into the kitchen. “Have a seat.”

 

I moved my kettle off the burner and placed a frying pan on the flame, lowering the heat.

 

“Nice place,” Shanks complimented, sitting at my kitchen table.

 

Seeing him at my door step was strange, but this was surreal seeing him at my table. It was something about how domestic it looked. He was a powerful pirate, a Yonko, the same as my father. It was easy to imagine him on a ship, in a tavern or in a battle, but not in my kitchen, fingers drumming against the table, looking around at the items hanging on the wall.

 

I tried to think about, when my father would visit, when I was little, but I couldn’t remember him ever being in our home. We were always on his ship. Granted, now I realize that he probably couldn’t fit in our house, but still.

 

“Thanks. It took a while to make it feel like my home, not like I was just crashing at Rayne’s.”

 

“So she used to live here?”

 

“Yes, and I try not to think about that too much, because I don’t want to think about what she used to do here.”

 

It had been an upsetting moment to say the least, when I realized that anyone of Rayne’s stories from her younger years probably took place in the same place that I now called home.

 

Shanks scrunched his face up in disgust.

 

“Exactly.” I pulled out a second mug and another infuser, filling it with tea leaves. It was a blend that Izo had brought me on his last visit.

 

“How long have you lived here?”

 

“Since I was dropped off here,” I answered easily. “Rayne lived here, when she was young, but moved out, when she got married.”

 

“She was married?”

 

I nodded. I had been surprised too, when I first found out. “Yeah. She doesn’t talk about her husband much. From what I’ve gathered, they met on the seas. They came back here and settled down, but he was always drawn back. He would come and go, but one day he went off and never came back. I don’t know what happened, whether it was his choice or if she lost him. She doesn’t want to talk about it, so I don’t ask.”

 

I filled the mugs, setting one down in front of Shanks.

 

“Thank you.”

 

“You’re welcome.” I went back to my cupboards. “I was thinking pancakes, maybe with those blue berries you picked up for me. Oh! I think I have chocolate chips in here somewhere! Do you have a problem with a sweet breakfast?”

 

“No, not at all.”

 

I looked at him over my shoulder. “What?”

 

“I didn’t say anything,” he raised his hand up in surrender.

 

“Maybe not with your words, but you did with your tone. I prefer to do the mocking, not being mocked.”

 

“I wasn’t mocking you. I just didn’t think that you would be one for sweets.”

 

“And why is that?”

 

“Bad ass bartender, who can kick the shit out of an entire pirate crew? Not exactly someone that I think of having a weakness for chocolate chips.”

 

“People can surprise you, Captain. I never expected one of the four emperors to deliver my groceries to me.”

 

“Touché.”

 

I turned my attention back to grabbing the necessary ingredients and measuring them out.

 

“How do you feel?” he asked.

 

“I’m perfectly fine. Balor used to kick my ass, even in hybrid form, but now it’s just, when I open the third eye. It just depends on how long it was open for. Last night’s incident wasn’t that bad. I didn’t keep it open that long, so a little extra sleep did the trick.”

 

“I’ve seen a few fruits take a toll on its user like that, but I’ve never seen one like yours.”

 

“Most people haven’t. What about you? It’s kind of hard to believe that you wouldn’t have one.”

 

“I don’t. I never really saw what all the hype was about.”

 

I laughed at that. He never saw the appeal of the power of a devil fruit. I guess he didn’t have time. He became a Yonko on his own. He clearly had enough power on his own.

 

“You’re something else, Captain. Could go after whatever fruit you want, and you think they’re over hyped.”

 

He shrugged. “All that hype means we’ll fetch a pretty penny if we ever come across one again.”

 

“Again?”

 

“A couple of years ago, we came across the gomu gomu no mi.”

 

“The gum gum fruit? I never heard of that one.”

 

“Turns your body to rubber.”

 

“How much did you sell it for?”

 

“We didn’t. A kid ate it.”

 

I paused my mixing, turning to look at him, incredulous. “Did you just say a kid ate it?”

 

“Luffy,” he elaborated. His expression was fond.

 

“How old was he?”

 

“Seven? He’s probably nine or ten now.”

 

I balked. “You let a child eat a devil fruit?!”

 

Shanks was quick to defend himself. “We didn’t _let_ him. We were dealing with some bandits-”

 

“You are not helping your case,” I interjected.

 

“They came to the tavern and-“

 

“Captain!”

 

“I DIDN’T TAKE HIM THERE! The girl there watched him. The bandits came looking for trouble, which we did _not_ give them, but while we were laughing about it, Luffy ate the fruit.”

 

I just gawked at him for a moment. “So… A kid ate a devil fruit… Because you weren’t… _Paying attention_?”

 

“It would seem, though to be fair, I’m a pirate, not a baby sitter.”

 

“So, you let a seven-year-old steel your loot, which was worth hundreds of thousands of bellies, because you weren’t paying attention?” I deadpanned.

 

He deflated a bit. “Alright, that I should be ashamed of.”

 

I nodded in agreement, stirring the batter.

 

“Luffy’s a strong kid. He’s fine with it. He was way more upset about me losing my arm than eating the fruit.”

 

“Captain, please tell me that he was horrified by the story and not that you some how brought a child to a situation, where you lost a limb.”

 

“He told off the mountain bandits, so they took him as a hostage. We beat most of them, but the leader took Luffy out to sea. I went to save him, and a sea king took my arm.”

 

“One: I don’t have children, but if I did, I would never ever let them anywhere near you. Two: I’m having difficulty believing that a sea king took your arm. I know that you have conqueror’s haki, and even if you didn’t, I know that you are more than strong enough to take out a sea king. Even I can take out a sea king.”

 

“Luffy wants to be the pirate king. With spirit like his he might actually be able to do it one day, but he’s foolish and reckless.” His grin returned.

 

“He’s _seven_ ,” I pointed out. “Kids have to-“ I nearly dropped my bowl. “You gave up an arm to teach a kid a lesson?”

 

Shanks’ smile didn’t falter. It seemed to widen if anything. “I like to think that I placed a bet on a new era.”

 

I shook my head in disbelief. “That kid must _really_ be something.”

 

“Who knows? Maybe you’ll meet him some day.”

 

“Maybe. But usually crews head straight for the Grand Line. They don’t take the time to explore the four blues. Granted getting from one sea to another is hard, but still. There’s so much that you can take from them, before heading into the Grand Line.”

 

“Wisdom from your brothers?”

 

I snorted. “No. Those idiots were either born on the Grand Line or flocked to it like moths to a flame. I learned that from those,” I said, gesturing to the book cases that wrapped around the corner and lined the wall in the living room.

 

“What are they?” Shanks asked, looking behind him.

 

“Why don’t you pull one down and find out?”

 

He reached out, grabbing a book and placing it in front of him, flipping through it.

 

I poured the batter into the pan.

 

“Are these all captain’s logs?”

 

“Whenever my father defeats a crew, he takes the captain’s log and sends it to me with one of my brothers. They’re my most prized possessions.”

 

I looked back to see, which one he had plucked off the shelf.

 

“White Tipped Sebastian,” I noted, peering over Shanks’ shoulder. I returned my attention to the pancakes, so that they didn’t burn. “A fishman. He led a rebellion against the crew that had purchased him with the other slaves aboard. Once they defeated the captain and commandeered the ship, they started their own crew. They did pretty well for themselves, until they decided to challenge the Old Man. After they lost, they joined the eighth division.”

 

He placed it back on the shelf and grabbed a different one.

 

“Ugh, why did you have to pick that one?”

 

Unlike the others, which were for the most part wrapped in humble brown and black leather, this one was red with gold accents. “The bastard convinced people to join his crew, just to turn around and sell them at Saboady. “

 

“Do you have all these memorized?”

 

“You seem to forget that I have quite a bit of time on my hands. I spend most of it reading.”

 

“Yeah, but you have a ton of logs.”

 

“Well, I don’t get to leave. I don’t get to go on vacation, let alone have grandiose adventures on the sea, which would be fine, but I don’t get to have a normal life either. I don’t have friends. I don’t go out.  The only people, who don’t hate me are either old or related to me, and even then, that doesn’t mean that they all like me. So, I have to live vicariously through those logs, the news, my brothers, and I would say crews like yours, but if I’m being honest, I’ve never met a crew like yours, who I can talk to like this.”

 

I took a deep breath. I hadn’t meant to snap and blurt that all out, but it always annoyed me, when my brothers or Rayne were surprised at how much I read or how many things I’d sewn or how many recipes I tried out. What the hell else was there for me to do? Maybe it would be different if I was trapped in a big city, some place that was always changing, but I was in Aurora, where we did the same shit every damn day.

 

“I spend a lot of time reading over those logs, so yes, I have most of them memorized.”

 

Shanks sensed that I didn’t really want to talk about what I had just said. He also didn’t seem to take any offense to it, which I was thankful for. Instead, he focused on the logs. “Who’s your favorite?”

 

I stacked the finished pancakes on a plate next to the stove and poured more batter into the pan. While those cooked, I set the table.

 

“I don’t know that I have one favorite. My favorite captains are the ones that you can tell genuinely care for their crews, the ones, who see their men are more than a crew, but as friends, as family. I think that’s why I like you and your men so much.”

 

“That’s it? It has nothing to do with my ruggedly good looks or chivalry?”

 

“No. It’s your relationship with your crew and those deep deep pockets that you so generously tip me from.”

 

“Ah ha! There’s the real reason. You’re all about the loot like a true pirate.”

 

I shrugged, placing the pancakes in the center of the table, depositing two of them onto his plate. “What can I say? It runs in my blood. Plus, you have looks, but I’m not sure good is a word I’d use, not rugged either. Maybe ragged and-”

 

“Ridiculous…” he finished flatly.

 

“Exactly! Now you’re getting it.”

 

“You’re mean Eliza.”

 

I raised a brow, sitting down and snatching up a pancake for myself. ‘ _That’s a new one._ ’

 

“I would have you know that there are women across the seas that have told me they find my roguish appearance sexy.”

 

“It doesn’t count, when you pay them.”

 

Shanks’ jaw dropped, before he threw his head back, letting out a loud laugh that probably could be heard in the tavern downstairs.

 

I teased him sure, but Shanks wasn’t exactly hard to look at. He was tall with skin tanned by the sun that pulled over his muscles, which were almost always on display seeing he always rolled up his sleeve to his elbow and never did more than half of the buttons on his shirt. Like this laughing openly, eyes dancing with amusement, it was easy to see why so many found him alluring.

 

At the same time his sharp features and smug, at times arrogant, grin played to the devilish rogue, which was only emphasized by the sense of danger the three parallel lines across his face emanated.

 

My eyes got caught on the three jagged lines, marring his flesh, bringing to a question that I had been sitting on since I first saw him to the forefront of my mind.

 

“Can I ask you something that you probably don’t want to answer?” I asked, once he settled down.

 

“You mean aside from that?”

 

I rolled my eyes. “Yes, aside from that.”

 

“Go ahead. I think it’s only fair at this point.”

 

That was true.

 

“Did Teach give you those scars?”

 

Shanks sighed, seeming burdened, like there was an invisible weight on his shoulders. “Yeah that was him.”

 

I nodded solemnly. “Looks like his handiwork.”

 

“You’ve got quite the interesting family Miss Elizabeth,” Shanks said with a sad grin.

 

“He is _not_ my family,” I corrected quickly. “If my father can choose his sons, then I can choose my brothers, and I would _never_ choose him.

 

“I know the others think Teach is an underachiever. No one really thinks too much of him, but he’s…”

 

“Dangerous,” Shanks finished.

 

“Yeah, but there’s something else there. My brothers are dangerous. Captain, you are dangerous. I’m not unaware of that. However, you do not make my skin crawl.”

 

“You’re a smart girl, not so smart as to not let a dangerous pirate into your apartment, but smart.”

 

I snorted. “Listen here, Red Hair. I’m not saying that I would beat you, because I doubt that I would be able to, but we both know that if we fought, you wouldn’t be coming out of that unscathed.

 

“You’re smart too, Captain, smart enough to know that hurting me would cause a war. Maybe you and your men would win. Maybe you wouldn’t. But there would be death on both sides. I told you that one of the main reasons I like you is because I like how you treat your crew. You wouldn’t ask them to die over someone like me.”

 

Shanks scoffed.

 

“What?”

 

“Maybe you’re not that smart after all.”

 

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Maybe I should’ve poisoned your pancakes.”

 


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey look at that I'm back from the dead aka adulthood

“DIE DEMON!”

 

“EAT SAND!”

 

I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing myself for the balls of wet sand that were being lobbed at me.

 

They say that the apple doesn’t fall from the tree. The children running along the beach, scooping up handfuls of sand from the shore were proof of that. Mari and TJ were just as rotten as their father, Tel. The same could be said of the other kids, all of whom were offspring of Tel’s cronies.

 

“Knock it off!” Gene yelled from the roof.

 

As if these were annoying brats were going to listen.

 

Gene was replacing a section of the roof. I was playing the roll of elevator, hoisting materials up to him, via our makeshift lift that consisted of a wooden pallet connected to some rope. The rope was tossed over a sturdy branch of the massive tree that grew behind the store. I then pulled the rope, lifting Gene up first with his tools and supplies following shortly after.

 

Usually, once everything was up there, I would retreat inside, until Gene hollered for me. If it was a particularly large load. I secured the rope to a counter weight of some sort, so that I didn’t have to stand there until he was finished working.

 

It wasn’t particularly laborious for me. If needed, I could hold the weight for hours without getting tired, but it was boring, and I would be far more productive in the store.

 

I had the current load of boards about half way up, when the wind started to pick up, catching the boards and causing the whole pallet to spin, occasionally bumping into the store. While I was trying to straighten out, the kids showed up.

 

Now, I was stuck. I couldn’t keep my eyes open, because of the damn sand. I couldn’t see to straighten out the boards. I couldn’t see if there were any little bastards underneath them either, so I couldn’t drop them.

 

I didn’t want to hurt them. They were stupid kids, who didn’t know any better, because they were taught to be cruel, by a group of absolute assholes. Plus, the last thing I needed was the town to get the pitchforks and torches to chase me out for accidently squashing a child.

 

I heard the sound of something whizzing by my head and then felt the wet smack of sand hitting my arm.

 

I bit back the urge to swear. I could hear it now. ‘ _The Demon spewed obscenities at a group of innocent children!’_

“HYA!” someone grunted out, right before I was beamed in the face. It was quickly followed by gleeful giggles and more taunts.

 

A low whistle interrupted their jeers.  “Pretty lucky shot there, kid.”

 

“Lucky?!” TJ cried out indignantly. Of course, it would be Tel, Jr. that hit me. “I have the best aim in Aurora!”

 

The others hyped him up.

 

“I dunno. Looked like a lucky shot to me.”

 

“Yasopp,” I warned. “Knock it off.”

 

A familiar chuckle met my ears. If I could’ve opened my eyes without getting sand in them, I would’ve glared at Shanks.

 

“Watch this!”

 

TJ scooped up some more sand. I braced myself, just in case he landed a hit. Fortunately, nothing made contact, though I did feel the wind shift as the sand flew by me.

 

“Like I said, lucky. Listen kid. If you’re gonna say you have the best aim in the village, you have to be able to land multiple shots in a row.”

 

There was a mischievous edge to Yasopp’s voice. Seven successive wet smacks followed.

 

‘ _He didn’t…_ ’

 

“FILTHY PIRATE!”

 

“MY DAD’S GOING TO GET YOU!”

 

One kid started crying.

 

‘ _He did._ ’

 

The indignant shouts and wet wails didn’t stop but faded as the kids ran back home.

 

Once I was sure they were gone, I let out a sigh and released the rope from my left hand, still holding steady with my right.

 

I wiped the sand from my eyes and finally opened them.

 

Shanks and Yasopp were smiling in the direction that the kids ran off in.

 

“Did you just throw sand at a bunch of kids?” I asked, eyeing the boards. I adjusted the rope, so that they weren’t in danger of hitting the store. I then quickly hoisted them up, walking back to the large anchor that I used as a counter weight. It was a bit low after tying it up, so I pulled the anchor back a bit.

 

“Brains, beauty and brawn. Miss Elizabeth, you’re quiet the triple threat.”

 

“I can’t believe you held that up and aren’t even tired,” Yasopp followed.

 

“Didn’t you just watch me kick the shit out a pirate crew the other day? I’m the daughter of the strongest man in the world, and you’re surprised I can do a little lifting? You’ve got the brawn, but maybe you should work on the brains,” I said, starting towards the store.

 

“What about the beauty?” Shanks asked.

 

“Could use some work,” I teased.

 

“I can’t decide if I find you two, cute or disgusting.”

 

“Funny, because I can’t decide if I should thank you or scold you for throwing sand at _children_.”

 

“Hey! I helped you out!” he argued.

 

“Yeah, until Tel comes after me later, cause his bastards have sand in their eyes.”

 

“You will too, if you don’t get the rest of that sand off of your face.”

 

I went to wipe at my face again.

 

“Here.” Shanks pulled a bandana out of his pocket, bringing it to my face. I closed my eyes, allowing him to dust the sand off.

 

“I’m guessing you’re here to check on your order?” I asked.

 

“He is,” Yasopp answered. “I’m here to make sure that he actually asks about it and doesn’t just flirt with you the whole time.”

 

“Why don’t I throw you all over board again?” Shanks grumbled.

 

“Because we’re the only crew willing to put up with you.”

 

“The last bit came in today. I’m going to unload and put away the stock tomorrow. I’ll have it all packed up for you to pick up the day after. Then you can load up and head off on your next adventure.”

 

I’ll admit that I was sad, knowing that Shanks and his men would be leaving soon. Their presence in Aurora was the most entertainment that I had had in years. On the other hand, it was for the best. No doubt one of my brothers was already on their way and would be here soon. Any overlap would be disastrous.

 

Shanks pulled his hand back and I opened my eyes again. “I’m happy to help you. But I’m sure that you’re already aware that it’s going to cost you.”

 

“How about I pay you in whiskey?”

 

“CASH ONLY!” Gene yelled from the roof.

 

“Whiskey is fine,” I mouthed.

 

“I saw that!”

 

I turned to face Gene. “Quit yapping and get to fixing, so that I can leave!”

 

“Quit your yapping and get to working before I fire you!”

 

“You’d be lost without me!”

 

“I’ve been running that store, since before you were born! I am- “

 

I shook my head, walking back to the store as he ranted.

 

“I’ll catch up with you boys later.”

 

“Bye, Liz!”

 

“See you later, Miss Elizabeth.”

 

I went back inside and started to do some cleaning. It was fairly boring work, but that was fine. I’d take boring.

 

After a few hours, the bell chimed. I looked up at the door. Tel was there, alone, which was odd for him. He usually had at least one flunky with him.

 

“Demon!” he spat, seething where he stood. His muscles were tense and the veins in his neck and forehead were visible.

 

“Asshole,” I returned, exhausted by the conversation even though it had just begun.

 

“What the hell did you do to my children?”

 

“Nothing,” I answered annoyed.  “I couldn’t have done anything. I couldn’t see, because I had my eyes closed, so that I didn’t get sand in them, because your bastards and their little friends thought they should throw it in my face!”

 

“Nothing?! You called a band of pirates to attack them!”

 

“Bullshit! I didn’t call anyone. I stood there and let them throw shit at me like I always do. We’ve been going through the same shit for fifteen years! We both know that I didn’t do a god damned thing to your kids, the same way I haven’t done anything to you, your stupid goons or to anyone else in this fucking village.”

 

“You’ve done nothing but cause problems since you got here.”

 

“No, _you’ve_ done nothing, but cause problems, since I got here. Every time something happens that involves me, it’s because _you_ started it.” Tel flinched every time I pointed at him, as if the simple gesture would harm him.

 

“Because you shouldn’t be here!”

 

“BUT I AM!” I yelled, throwing my arms up. “And at this point there isn’t a damn thing either of us can do about it. We’ve both been trying for years.”

 

“Maybe not, but I can do something about those pirates that you bring through.”

 

“What the fuck? I don’t bring anyone through. Please, tell me how I bring them through when I don’t go anywhere. The only ones I know are my brothers, and I don’t have any say who shows up or when.”

 

“You don’t bring them through?! Every time a crew shows up, they flock to you!”

 

“I sell booze and supplies, of course they’re going to flock to me. It’s coincidental.”

 

“Coincidence,” he scoffed. “Is it coincidence that you’re so buddy buddy with all of them?”

 

“No, that’s not a coincidence. That’s intentional. One: Being nice to people is a key aspect of customer service, especially you want a tip. Two: Unlike some people, I don’t make it a habit of being a prick to people for no reason.”

 

“They’re dangerous,” he said lowly.

 

“Anyone can be dangerous, even you. Should someone go after you, because you might be a threat?”

 

“I _might_ be, but he Red Hair _is_ , and we can’t take that risk.”

 

I pulled a face. There it was. I had shut Tel down at the tavern, and his kids and by he by extension had got punked by one of Shanks’ men. Of course, this had nothing to do with him picking fights, it was all my fault. My fault for being here. My fault, because I had treated the Red-Haired Pirates like people as opposed to some kind of wild dog.   

 

What a load of shit.

 

“Tel, unlike you, I know about what goes on outside of this island. I know that the Red-Haired Crew isn’t just a pirate crew like you seem to think. Shanks and his men are one of the four strongest crews in the whole world. Shanks can knock you out without moving a muscle. If his crew thinks he is in any real danger, which trust me they don’t, they’ll get to you, before you can get to him.”

 

“Are you trying to scare me from going after your precious captain?”

 

“No, I just want to cover my bases, so that when he embarrasses you, you can’t say that I didn’t warn you. Now, get the fuck out. I got better shit to do than argue in circles with you.”

 

“We’ll see, who’s embarrassed.”

 

“Fuck off.”

 


	8. Chapter 8

“You do realize that while I am technically under her employ, you are under no obligation to the old bat’s bidding,” I said as Shanks and I walked back to Rayne’s. I twirled the cane in my hands, careful not to drop it. The last thing I needed was a lecture about damaging other people’s property.

 

One of the younger members of the crew, a hot head Mattie, had made a comment that I wasn’t close enough to hear. Whatever he said must’ve really been something though, because Rayne whipped her cane up and broke it over his head with an expletive filled warning about respecting your elders.

 

“Would you tell her no, when she’s like that?” he challenged.

 

It was a fair point. Even at her current age, Rayne was frightening when she wanted to be.

 

Sometimes I wondered if the frail old lady bit was just an act, if in actuality, she was some immortal being, who posed as an elderly bar keep, because she wanted to live a simple existence.

 

I could only imagine what she had been like, when she was younger. Full of piss and vinegar with the muscle to back it all up.

 

“Plus, I’m hardly going to pass up the chance to take a late-night stroll with you.”

 

I snorted. “You’re really laying it on thick.”

 

“Mattie’s brave sacrifice has given me this opportunity; it’d be a shame to waste it.”

 

“I don’t think brave is right word here. Stupid is probably a better fit. Plus, I’m sure he’ll be fine. I mean the cane broke, not his head, so it can’t be too bad, and I doubt that someone that could be taken out by an old lady with a cane would’ve made it this long on your crew.”

 

“I guess you’re right,” he conceded. “Sometimes I forget that you don’t just know us but know of us.”

 

“I know that Aurora is a bit detached from everything, but despite my father’s best efforts, I am not. Honestly, it amazes me how ignorant people here are. They don’t know a damn thing that happens outside of the West, not about Paradise, the New World, my father, you.”

 

“But you do, and you don’t seem to care at all.”

 

I shrugged. “You already said it, because I know you. I don’t just know of you.”

 

“You didn’t, when we first arrived.”

 

“No, but I’m associated with worse.”

 

Shanks scoffed. “That’s what they like to think.” 

 

“That’s true. They _really_ don’t like you, not than any yonko crew likes another, but still. Every time you come up, it’s always ‘ _That obnoxious Red Haired Bast-‘“_

 

Faster than I could blink, I found myself staring at the black cape that hung from Shanks’ shoulders. I barely heard the sound of his blade being drawn, the swoosh as it moved through the air, the squish as he deflected the projectiles that had been fired at us.

 

With a disgusting squelch the projectile fell to the ground, as a red mist from this impact fell upon us. My eyes followed it, fairly certain of what it was and who was responsible.

 

I picked up one of the blood-soaked sponges. “Same old shit,” I muttered.

 

“Is that a sponge?” Shanks asked.

 

“Yes,” I answered, my eyes scanning the area around me. This was surely only the first wave. They never stopped at just one. “They load them up with dish water, mud, piss, blood-“

 

I spun around, stepping out of the next sponges flight path. I reached out and caught it, so that the spray flew away from my body.

 

‘ _Assholes. All of them_.’

 

I put all of my strength into throwing the stupid thing as far as I could over the trees. It likely would’ve landed in the ocean, but if I was lucky maybe it would land on their fishing boats. If I was even luckier the smell of blood would stick to the boat and they’d get attack by a shark or a sea king.

 

“They’re easier to fill than water balloons. If you try to deflect it, it splatters.”

 

Another one same towards us, and Shanks deflected it.

 

“I guess having a pirate body guard comes in handy,” Tel sneered, walking out of the bushes.

 

I didn’t even have it in me to be angry at this point. I was just tired. “Yeah. It does. Are we done? This is pointless, and I really want to go wash my hands.”

 

“Bothered by a little blood on your hands? I figured you’d be used to it by now, demon.”

 

“I-“

 

Shanks’ haki rolled over the area like a tidal wave, crashing into everyone around him. My words caught in my throat, and Tel’s men dropped like flies, falling out of tree branches and out of their hiding places.

 

I was standing strong, but I was a little stunned. This was the will of an emperor. This was Red Haired Shanks, captain of the Red-Haired Pirates, this was someone, who could go toe-to-toe with my father.

 

The only member of the goon squad still conscious was Tel. It was clearly only because Shanks wanted him awake.

 

The pain in the ass was pressed up against a tree, the edge of Shanks’ blade against his neck. All the color had drained from his face, and he had broken into a sweat. His breathing quickened, bordering on hyperventilating.

 

“Her name is Elizabeth,” Shanks corrected.

 

Shanks was calm. He kept his voice low and his tone casual, as if he was casually discussing the weather. His eyes were stern, and his lips were turned down in a slight frown.

 

It was an odd sight. Shanks was loud and goofy by nature. He was bright smiles and belly laughs.

 

“I’ve always said that weapons are meant for actions, not words. But you’re not interested in actions, are you? You’re only interested in reactions. Pushing people, until they do what you want, manipulating them, so that you can maintain your status.

 

“It’s a pretty good strategy for keeping favor within the village. The problem is that it relies on you being able to react faster than your target.”

 

In all the years that I had been in Aurora, never had I seen Tel, so obviously afraid. I’d rattled him on a number of occasions, but this was something else. There were no taunts, no false bravado, no sneers. There were no cronies, no hype-men, no back up, no witnesses to this.

 

Tel was alone, and he was terrified.

 

“Shanks,” I called, my voice surprisingly firm.

 

He glanced back at me. I tried to give him a less than impressed stare, tried being the operative word.

 

Shanks focused back on Tel. “If you want to talk about people having blood on their hands, then I’m your guy, not her. More people have died on the end of my blade than you can possibly imagine. Honestly, I wouldn’t think too much of adding you to that list. I don’t have any empathy for people, who mistreat the people I care about. But Miss Elizabeth wouldn’t like that, and you would cause her more problems dead than you do alive.”

 

Shanks pulled his sword back, sheathing it.

 

Tel collapsed to the ground. Tears poured down his face, whimpers leaving his lips.

 

“Elizabeth could very well be the demon that you want her to be, yet she chooses puts up with your harassment day in and day out. She gives more consideration to the feelings of the people here than they have ever given to her. She protects you, knowing that if given the chance you would throw her to the wolves.

 

“That woman you call demon, the one that you try to break is stronger and kinder than you could ever be. Your demon is a saint, and she is the only reason that you are alive right now. If I were you, I’d thank her, when I woke up.”

 

Whatever restraint that Shanks had been exhibiting to keep Tel awake snapped, and he was out cold.

 

Shanks took a deep breath, before turning around, a sheepish grin on his blood splattered face. “Sor- “

 

Swallowing the lump forming in my throat, I cut him off. “Th- Thank you.”

 

“Eliza- “

 

“Come on,” I said, my speech steadier. “Let’s get this cane to the hag, and then we can do something about all this blood.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “I guess having a pirate body guard comes in handy,” Tel sneered, walking out of the bushes.
> 
>  
> 
> I didn’t even have it in me to be angry at this point. I was just tired. “Yeah. It does. Are we done? This is pointless, and I really want to go wash my hands.”
> 
>  
> 
> “Bothered by a little blood on your hands? I figured you’d be used to it by now, demon.”


End file.
